Anggun

Anggun Cipta Sasmi (born April 29, 1974, in Jakarta, Indonesia) is an Indonesian singer/songwriter with French citizenship. Anggun was born in Jakarta, Indonesia as the second child and first daughter of Darto Singo, an Javanese artist and Dien Herdina, a housewife who was from a noble Javanese family. She was raised in Yogyakarta, known for still being the center of Indonesian culture. Her father trained Anggun in singing since age 7 with high discipline. She was trained various vocal technique and respiration technique everyday. After she could sing well, her mother acted as her manager to accept the singing orders. She began perform in the recent year and recorded her children's album two years later.
In her teens, Anggun was influenced by the rock music of native Javanese artists and by rock & roll singers and bands such as Elvis Presley, Metallica and The Police. In 1986, with Ian Antono, an Indonesian famous producer, Anggun started to release her first rock album titled Dunia Aku Punya which began her success in homeland. Anggun's fame reached its peak when the release of her 1990 singles, "Mimpi" and then "Tua Tua Keladi" (the latter gave her "The Most Popular Indonesian Artist 1990-1991" award). These singles massively topped the charts and have become Anggun's biggest rock hits to date in Indonesia.[3] Following the success of the singles, Anggun returned to release her studio album Anak Putih Abu Abu in 1991 and then Nocturno in 1992. Both albums achieved the same success and moreover established her name as the most popular lady rocker in early 1990s.
Having already had tremendous success in her homeland Indonesia since she was 12, she decided to pursue an international career and left Indonesia in 1994. After a year in London, she settled in Paris, France and met producer Erick Benzi, who later helped her sign a record deal with Sony Music France and recorded her first French album, Au Nom de la Lune, in 1996. In late 1997, Anggun made a history for being the first Asian artist to break into international music scene by releasing her first international album Snow on the Sahara in Europe, Asia, and America. This album produced her biggest hit to date, "Snow on the Sahara".To date, Anggun has sold approximately 3 million copies of records worldwide and has become the most successful Asian artist outside Asia. Her success has spread throughout Europe, particularly in France.